Illinois Future Teacher Corps (IFTC) Program

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Program Description
Eligibility
How to Apply (and Obtaining the Application)
     Application Priority Consideration Date: March 1
Correcting Previously-Submitted Data
Details
How Funds Are Disbursed
Processing Updates
Teacher Shortage Disciplines in the State of Illinois
Hard-to-Staff Schools Listing
Participating Schools

If you plan to be a preschool, elementary or secondary school teacher who wants to teach in Illinois you may be eligible for the Illinois Future Teacher Corps (IFTC) Program. This program is generally for academically talented and financially needy students who are enrolled as juniors or above, with a priority given to individuals pursuing a  teacher shortage discipline and/or making a commitment to teach at a hard-to-staff school, and minority students. This award is designated for tuition, fees and room and board charges, or commuter allowance, if applicable. The annual scholarship awarded to a qualified applicant may be $5,000 or $10,000 (and in some cases, may be increased an additional $5,000) depending on the teaching commitment made. This scholarship may be received for a maximum of four semesters or six quarters.

As part of the application process, you must agree to the terms and conditions that are outlined in the application's Teaching Agreement/Promissory Note. By receiving this scholarship, you must teach in Illinois. If this teaching commitment is not fulfilled, the scholarship converts to a loan, and you must repay the entire amount plus interest.

Eligibility

To be eligible, you must:

• Be a U.S. citizen or an eligible non-citizen
• Be a resident of Illinois
• Be a high school graduate or person who has received a General Educational Development (GED) certificate
• Be enrolled, or accepted for enrollment as a junior or above, on at least a half-time basis in a Teacher Education Program at an eligible Illinois public or private college, seeking initial teacher certification; or be pursuing additional coursework needed to gain Illinois State Board of Education approval to teach, including alternative teacher certification
• Maintain a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 2.5 on a 4.0 scale
• Maintain satisfactory academic progress as determined by your college
• Comply with federal Selective Service registration requirements
• Complete the application process by:
  • submitting a fully-completed application for the Teacher Education Scholarship Programs (which includes the Teaching Agreement/Promissory Note), 
  • being certified as meeting eligibility requirements by the college at which you will use the scholarship, and
  • accepting the scholarship (if one is offered)
• Apply for federal student financial aid to determine your expected family contribution (ISAC recommends that you complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid prior to the time your college certifies your eligibility. Typically, ISAC makes Initial Certification Documents available to colleges beginning in the month of May that precedes the academic year for which you are requesting funds.)
• Sign the application's Teaching Agreement/Promissory Note promising to fulfill the teaching commitment or repay funds received, plus interest
• Not be in default on any student loan, nor owe a refund on any state or federal grant
• Not have previously received funds from the IFTC Program for the equivalent of two academic years, which is the program maximum
• Not receive funds from the Minority Teachers of Illinois (MTI) Scholarship or Illinois Special Education Teacher Tuition Waiver (SETTW) programs during the same term(s) for which you receive funds from the IFTC Program

How to Apply

The Teacher Education Scholarship Programs application (which must be submitted each academic year in order to apply for the Illinois Future Teacher Corps (IFTC) and/or Minority Teachers of Illinois (MTI) Scholarship programs), along with the corresponding Teaching Agreement/Promissory Note for each program, is available online as an interactive application. The online application has many benefits, including program information which is available at your fingertips, online edits which prevent errors, elimination of mailing time, and immediate confirmation that your application has been received at ISAC.

As part of the interactive application, a digital ID allows you to provide your legally binding digital signature. Obtaining a digital ID is the first part of the application process and you must have a valid Illinois Drivers License or State ID to do so. If you are interested in submitting a Teacher Education Scholarship Programs application, but are unable to obtain a digital ID from the State of Illinois, contact a College Zone Counselor.

The online, interactive application collects all the information needed to determine eligibility (including your agreement to the program terms and conditions, as outlined in the application's Teaching Agreement/Promissory Note).

For priority consideration, ISAC must receive your complete application on or before March 1 preceding the academic year for which you are applying. You must submit a new application each year you wish to be considered for a scholarship. Because the number of scholarships awarded each year is based on limited funding, it is possible that not all applicants who meet the March 1 priority consideration deadline will receive a scholarship. You are encouraged to submit your application as far in advance of March 1 as possible. Applications received after that date will be given consideration for the scholarship only if funding remains available after all timely, qualified applicants have been awarded.

Please note: once an electronic application has been successfully submitted, a confirmation page will display to verify the exact date and time it was received by ISAC. For individuals who are unable to apply electronically and receive ISAC approval for an alternate means of applying, the application received date will be based upon the U.S. Postal Service postmark date.

Correcting Previously-Submitted Data

Only one interactive Teacher Education Scholarship Programs application/promissory note may be submitted per academic year. Consequently, if you need to change your response(s) to any item(s) after the interactive application/promissory note has been submitted, you will need to do the following:

• To change your response to the questions regarding Program Choice (IFTC, MTI, or Both), Program Preference if awarded both programs (IFTC or MTI), and/or whether you'll teach in a hard-to-staff area (Yes or No), you must contact a College Zone Counselor to request a paper application/promissory note. If an unsigned paper application/promissory note is submitted, it will be returned for your signature.
• To change your response to any other items on the interactive application/promissory note, submit a signed letter to ISAC's Deerfield office. The letter to clearly state what change(s) need to be made to the original information you'd submitted.

Please contact a College Zone Counselor if you have any questions regarding the application/promissory note correction process.

Details

• Applications are processed in date-received order.
• ISAC selects recipients from among the highest scoring qualified applicants on the basis of renewal applicant status, performance-based academic data, expected family contribution, and minority student status. You are considered a renewal applicant if during the previous academic year you received funds from the program for which you are currently applying.
• The total number of scholarships awarded in a given fiscal year is contingent upon available funding.

How Funds Are Disbursed

ISAC works with the college to disburse funds for this program. The college certifies student eligibility and then submits a payment request on behalf of the student. It may take up to eight weeks after the date that ISAC processes the payment request before funds are received at the college.

Depending on the college, students may be responsible for payment until program funds are received. Qualified applicants who are awaiting receipt of funds from this program should contact the Financial Aid Office or Business Office to determine the college's policy.

Processing Updates

Note that ISAC routinely updates this section as new information becomes available. Be sure to check back periodically for the current processing status.

For the 2008-09 Academic Year (last updated on
August 14, 2008):

Notifications regarding IFTC Program eligibility and funding status were mailed on August 13, 2008, to applicants for whom ISAC had on file both a complete Teacher Education Scholarship Programs application (from the student) and a complete Initial Certification (from the college indicated on the application).

Qualified applicants who were notified that they were not funded will be considered and notified if funding becomes available by the end of the fall term. Funding may become available if previously-awarded recipients decline or become ineligible for funds obligated to them. 

The process from this point forward for all complete applications is as follows:

• the college's financial aid office certifies the applicant's eligibility to participate in the IFTC Program
• once ISAC receives the Initial Certification from the college, the amount of each award is determined based on whether an applicant who is seeking initial teacher certification is also studying a teacher shortage discipline, agreeing to teach at a hard-to-staff school, or both
• for the 2008-09 academic year, scholarship awards are as follows:
  • up to $5,000 for individuals enrolled in a teacher shortage discipline who also agree to teach in a teacher shortage discipline
  • up to $5,000 for individuals who agree to teach at a hard-to-staff school
  • up to $10,000 for individuals enrolled in a teacher shortage discipline who also agree to teach in a teacher shortage discipline at a hard-to-staff school
  • based on the anticipated amount of program appropriations, funding likely will not be available to award individuals who are seeking initial teacher certification but neither agree to teach in a teacher shortage discipline nor at a hard-to-staff school
• the applicant is notified of eligibility status as follows:
  • Notices of Eligibility are sent to those applicants who qualify as "eligible and funded" (i.e., are awarded a scholarship). Colleges request payment each term for those applicants who qualify as eligible and continue to meet all eligibility requirements, including enrollment.
  • Notification is sent to applicants who qualify as eligible but, due to limited funding, are not awarded a scholarship.
  • Notices of Ineligibility are sent to those applicants who do not qualify as eligible (i.e., are not awarded a scholarship), as certified by the college.

For the 2009-10 Academic Year (last updated on
August 1, 2008):

ISAC anticipates launching the 2009-10 interactive Teacher Education Scholarship Programs application during December 2008. All 2009-10 applicants will use an Illinois digital ID to submit their applications online. Procedures for obtaining a digital ID from the State of Illinois will be provided as part of the online application process. Individuals who are interested in submitting a Teacher Education Scholarship Programs application, but are unable to obtain a digital ID from the State of Illinois, should contact a College Zone Counselor. 

Teacher Shortage Disciplines in the State of Illinois

As of October 2007, the following list of approved teacher shortage disciplines in the State of Illinois will be used when determining 2008-09 IFTC Program eligibility.

Early Childhood Education

Regular Education

• Bilingual Education
• Math
• Reading
• Science

Special Education

• Cross Categorical (seeking certification in two or more areas in Special Education)
• Emotionally Disturbed (BD/SED)
• Learning Behavior Specialist I
• Other/General Special Education (Severe/profound special education, including blind and deaf specialties, and early childhood special education)
• Speech and Language Impaired

Hard-to-Staff Schools Listing

Illinois schools included on the U.S. Department of Education's list used for teacher loan forgiveness will be used as the list for hard-to-staff schools. The teaching requirement can only be fulfilled at the Illinois public elementary and secondary schools on the list at the time the teaching obligation begins, or at a nonprofit Illinois public, private, or parochial preschool.

Click here to view a listing of hard-to-staff schools by academic year. This listing is being provided as an example of schools that are considered hard-to-staff. The listing reflects Illinois school data through the 2007-08 academic year.

To view a listing of Illinois colleges approved to participate in this program, click on the link for the appropriate academic year:

2008-09

ISAC offers three programs designed specifically for individuals studying to become teachers: the IFTC Program, the Minority Teachers of Illinois (MTI) Scholarship Program, and the Illinois Special Education Teacher Tuition Waiver (SETTW) Program. A comparison chart provides a side-by-side view of the IFTC, MTI Scholarship, and Illinois SETTW programs.